Tuesday, December 16, 2014

I am so glad today is here! As those of you who have been following along know I've been busy filling holiday orders from my shop and also getting ready for the craft fair I did this last weekend. And last week, it was a long one. While in the throes of getting ready for the show our whole house came down with some respiratory virus that kept us up hacking all hours of the night, school was missed (a.k.a. time alone to get stuff done was missed), we had a wind storm which knocked down a few trees in out neighborhood and were left without power for 24 hours. With so much going on I decided not to get a tree, put up lights, or buy any Christmas presents until that was all over. So from here on out it's all about the holidays for us. I am so looking forward to spending the next week doing some shopping, wrapping presents and watching holiday movies, baking cookies, and just being present enough to truly enjoy the season with my littles. In fact I am so excited to get on with them that, despite my lethargy last night, I dragged out my trusty fake tree just to put up for the next few days until we get a real one (it also confirmed how much i want a real one this year).

And speaking of the craft fair - it was a completely different experience from the first time I did it this last spring. Working from home can be pretty isolating and one of the reasons I wanted to do the craft fair to begin with was just to be out, in person. See who my customers are, meet other makers, see what people gravitate towards, get feedback and the like. The mood of the last one just seemed so off, that despite the fact I was pretty certain I didn't want to do it again, I thought I'd try the holiday one. And I am really glad I did. Obviously the holidays are a time when people are out and about looking for presents, so the crowd was much larger, and overall the mood was just so much more upbeat. Both the shoppers and vendors seemed in really good spirits which made it really fun. And this time I really did get to have all of those experiences that I had hoped for. One of the random things I noticed was that both men and women like my products. I am not sure I would have really known that otherwise. So from the business end of things to the social end of things it was a great experience this time around. And as an added bonus at the end, a lot of the vendors, myself included, did trades with our goods which was such a fun way to start my pile of Christmas gifts.

9 comments:

You did it! Happy dance! I always trot out my "sometimes done is better than good," but this sounds like it was done AND good! I'm so glad that you came out of the whole experience feeling so energized (tired) and positive! And not Christmas can really begin! I love your treelot shots. They're even putting me in the spirit! :)

I'm glad you had a much better experience this year and actually enjoyed yourself as well. And yay for all of the chores getting out of the way. Now it's time for fun. Keep us posted on your fun things. I'm taking notes

We managed to get our tree last weekend, earlier than usual, just I was hoping this year, and it's decorated now. In fact, every day I find a new special ornament that I bring home. It's wonderful that the craft fair was a great experience this time. I like the part of exchanging gifts at the end.

I love the photos! The first one is so cool! I am all scrambled this year with the holidays, some things I am so ahead of schedule with, and others really behind. Time to make some trusty lists I think! ; )

i'm so glad that you got more out of the holiday craft fair than you expected! also, i would love to be able to work from home someday when we have children just for the flexibility alone. however, i always forget that there will be days when kids have to stay home and you can't get work done, and there will be days when you feel kind of lonely and maybe just want to chat with someone in the office. the grass is always greener in one way or another :)

I can't believe you guys lost power! That must have been some kind of storm, right? Thankfully (knock on wood) we've only lost it a handful of times, but it's always hilariously frustrating each time! "Oh, the power's out, I'll just go watch tv---no. Oh, okay, I'll just read a book here by the light--no." You HAVE to get a real tree. I know I'm not the authority on Christmas or anything, but you have to have to have to.

Also so good to hear about the craft fair. I have a feeling you're only going to get more and more comfortable each time you go, and you're going to learn so much. I'm not surprised your stuff is such a hit with both men and women. It's a testament to what you make, not that you needed me to tell you that ;) xo

I would LOVE to visit a Christmas tree forest! This sounds like so much fun. I've already got my tree now though so it's too late :( but it's still on my bucket list! Hopefully next year! Gorgeous photos, as per usual xx

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